House of Origins
by EveGlass
Summary: The friends, the enemies, the divisions that might mean more than they all thought: it all begins here... Rated K.
1. The House

_**P**_atricia

_**I**_ was ignoring my mother, as usual.

She was halfway through the behaviour monologue that adults drag out when they take you somewhere new. We were on our way to my to drop me off at secondary school for the first time, and it was a _boarding_ school. I was eleven, and it would be my first term.

I could hardly wait to get there.

I glanced momentarily away from my window. My older brother, Jake, grinned at me in the rear-view mirror. I rolled my eyes in response, and his smile widened. His chestnut eyes were gleaming. Jake had just finished the school the previous term, and had agreed to take the day off from his busy schedule of sleeping and watching TV to see me off.

"… and just remember your manners, Patricia. First impressions are everything." My mother was saying as we drove along a small road that wound its way through the woods that bordered the school grounds.

"Yes, Mum." I replied, not bothering to mask my disinterest. Mum paused for a moment.

"Just keep your head down and work hard this year. It's important that you get the best start at this school." She told me sternly.

"Come on, Mum," Jake cut in. I felt a little wave of gratitude towards him. "She knows all this. You're just making her more nervous."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I am _not_ nervous!" The gratitude had evaporated. Jake laughed and shook his head.

"Ah, we're here." Mum said as she turned the car to the right, driving through massive wrought iron gates. I sat forward and looked out of the window, watching as we got closer and closer to the school building. I had been here before with Mum to collect Jake and take him home for holidays.

The main school building was an imposing structure made of red brick with a thick grey slate roof and large wooden doors and windows. The hedges and the sprawling green lawns were trimmed and healthy. Mum drove along the gravelled path that went around the back of the school and I saw Anubis House for the first time.

The first thought that entered my head was _big_, followed by _old_ and then by _cool_. It was made of the same red brick and slate as the school. Ivy climbed up the walls, snaking around the tiny wooden veranda on the front of the house, the triple bay windows and the open front door. There were two chimneys, one at each end of the wide roof.

When the car halted, we all got out. I looked up at the place that was going to be my home – and from what I'd been told the home of up to seven other students – for the next seven years. I was about to sprint inside when I heard my mother's scolding voice behind me.

"Patricia, don't even think about leaving me and Jake to get your case!"

I sighed and turned back. Jake carefully lifted my suitcase out of the back of Mum's silver Volvo and set it down on the gravel.

"Now…" Mum said. "Let me have a look at you." She took a step back, giving me a quick once over with her eyes. I saw her lips purse. I knew what she saw. She saw her youngest child and her only daughter, the little Goth-Pixie. She saw a tall and slim girl with elfin features, a thick mane of dark red hair and grey-green eyes dressed in dark clothes and scuffed up biker boots. But most importantly, I knew that she saw the face of the man she had once loved in mine. My brothers, Jake and Simon, looked more like her with their chestnut eyes and hair. Sometimes I wondered if she wished that Dad had taken me with him after the divorce. It probably would have been easier on her.

I half expected her to frown in distaste, but instead she smiled. It was a faint smile, but a smile all the same.

"What am I going to do with you?" Mum said as she fiddled with the collar of my black leather jacket. Then she stepped back and watched as Jake gathered me up in a huge bear-hug.

"Good luck, sis." He said, ruffling my hair as we pulled out of the embrace. I slapped his hand away but grinned. I was going to miss him.

"Do you need us to help you get inside?" Mum asked.

"It's fine, Mum. I can manage by myself." I replied.

"That's what I'm afraid of…" Mum muttered. Then she sighed. "Go on then. I'll call you tomorrow night to see how you're getting on."

I smiled at them one last time before I turned and walked towards Anubis House. I didn't have to look back to know that they watched me until I disappeared from sight.

_**F**_abian

"Uncle Ade? We're going to be late!" I called as I flipped the shop doorsign to CLOSED.

"Coming!" Uncle Ade replied from somewhere at the back of the dusty little antiques' shop cluttered with hundreds of interesting gadgets and furniture that he had acquired in his travels around the globe.

There was a muffled thump, then a crash. I didn't bother to ask why. Anybody who knew my eccentric uncle Ade well enough knew that he was a clumsy and accident-prone man.

"Oh, truffles!" He exclaimed a moment before he came into view, frowning over his little half-moon spectacles. My father's older brother was a short, balding man who dressed only in tweed suits and wore a silk cravat tucked into his shirt at all times. He looked down at the case at my side and frowned. I'd spent the last two weeks of the summer holidays with Uncle Ade, helping out in his shop.

"All ready, I see?" He said with a kind smile.

"Uncle Ade, I've been ready for an hour!" I wished I didn't sound so whingey.

"Well, let us not stand around." Uncle Ade said as he flipped the doorsign around without looking at it. Then he opened the door and bustled out into the crisp, morning air. I sighed and flipped the doorsign back before following him out. My new school was only at the other side of town, but it was a thirty-minute drive through backcountry roads to get there, unless we got stuck behind a tractor or a herd of cows.

The beaten-up sky blue truck that Uncle Ade had bought on a trip to America parked in front of the shop could have been sold as one of the antiques. I put my heavy case in the back seat and climbed into the front passenger seat beside Uncle Ade. The truck groaned in protest under our weight. The inside of the truck smelt of tobacco, coffee and Magic Tree.

"Off we go!" Uncle Ade said as he turned the key in the ignition. The car sputtered for a few seconds before the engine came to life with a metallic coughing sound.

"Now," Uncle Ade began as we began the short journey to the school. "Have you got all your things in your suitcase?"

It was a little late for a checklist. "Yes, I've got everything I need." I replied.

"Good lad." Uncle Ade said. The clutch squeaked and he frowned, wobbling the stiff gear-stick. I looked out of the window and watched as field after field, tree after tree flashed past. The bovine traffic didn't seem too bad that day. As I watched the countryside fly by, my mind wandered far away.

I'd enjoyed the two weeks with Uncle Ade more than I ever enjoyed the capital with my parents. I loved the countryside, and I felt happy there. It was peaceful, and unlike in London, I could always find my own space to think, whether it was looking around Uncle Ade's shop or going for a walk in the woods. To me, feeling the summer breeze and the warmth of the sun on my back was all that I needed.

So starting at a boarding school in the middle of my perfect little country world sounded like heaven to me. However, I would miss Uncle Ade. For all his forgetful clumsiness, I could sit for hours and hours while he told me stories of the places he'd visited. He told about African safaris, the blizzards of Siberia and the delights of Indian marketplaces. Sometimes, I would close my eyes and I could almost hear the sounds and smell the scents he described to me.

I had often asked him if he would take me with him on his adventures, but he had simply smiled and told me, "Fabian my boy, when the time comes, you will have many adventures of your own."

_**M**_ara

I stared up at the dark, foreboding form of Anubis House as my stomach contracted with nerves.

I didn't want to go in, but I had to. I remember waking up on the first morning of the holidays thinking that two months was an eternity. But with every passing day, I had been getting closer and closer to the thing that I'd been dreading and anticipating on equal parts.

And now I was there. I was standing on the edge of the most important day of my life so far. I felt my father put a hand on my shoulder, and I turned to look up at him.

"All ready, Munchkin?" He asked with a smile.

On any other day, I'd have flushed in embarrassment and begged him not to use my nickname, but on that particular day I was grateful for it. I knew that there were children in the world who didn't have parents there to call them silly nicknames that they could get embarrassed over.

I just nodded. "Yeah,"

"Are you nervous?" Dad asked me.

I peered back up at Anubis House. "Very," I replied. He laughed.

"I'll help you get your luggage inside." He said, taking the handle of my suitcase out of my hand. I took a deep breath and walked towards the boarding house. Not just a boarding house, but my future. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest that I could feel every beat in my fingers and toes. We went up the three stone steps and crossed the little veranda to the open front door.

The inside of Anubis House was dark. There was a big staircase to the right that wound up onto the top floor. On the wall behind it was a stained glass window made up of thousands of little autumn-coloured diamonds. The soles of my shoes clicked on the black and white checkerboard tiles. There was a large mirror near the door, a huge grandfather clock and a sarcophagus sitting upright against the wooden panelled wall.

The smell of baking wafting through to us from the kitchen, but I was too nervous to think about eating.

We stopped in the middle of the hallway and looked around. There was total silence except for the hollow ticking of the grandfather clock.

"It looks like we're the first ones here, Munchkin." Dad's voice echoed and bounced back at us from the wooden panels.

A moment later, a tall man with thinning, greasy black hair and a trimmed beard strode into view above us on the landing.

He smiled, showing tobacco-yellowed teeth.

"Hello. A new boarder, I see?" He said as he began to walk down the stairs slowly. His walk reminded me of the documentaries I'd seen on the planet's greatest predators. Slow, deliberate strides meant to intimidate.

"Ah, yes," My father replied, giving my shoulder a light squeeze. "I'm Francis Jaffray, and this is my daughter Mara."

The tall man was at the bottom of the stairs now. I could see his eyes now. They were cold and black like obsidian, and they sent shivers up and down my spine.

They lit up when he looked down at me, and not in a kind way. The predator had spotted his prey. He gave me another flash of those yellowing teeth.

"My name is Victor. I am the school caretaker." I listened closely to his accent; it definitely wasn't English. His obsidian eyes flicked back to my father.

"Would you like a drink before you leave?" Victor asked.

Dad looked down at me. "Do you need me to stay for a while?"

I glanced up at Victor. He gave me the creeps, but it didn't matter. I was just being paranoid. I didn't want to make Dad think that I wouldn't like it there. I shook my head. "No, it's okay. I'll be fine."

Dad hugged me tightly to his chest. I put my arms around him and closed my eyes, breathing in his favourite aftershave. "I'll miss you." I mumbled into his chest.

"I'll miss you too, Munchkin." He replied, smiling into my midnight hair. When we broke apart, Dad punched my arm gently, the way he always did when he wanted me to be strong.

"I'll call you later when I'm unpacked." I told him, fighting back the sudden wave of tears dangerously close to spilling out.

He nodded. "No trouble this year, okay Munchkin?"

I rolled my eyes. I was a good student, and I rarely ever caused any trouble. "You _know_ I won't, Dad."

Dad grinned. "Of course," Then, he turned towards the door and I watched him leave. I didn't turn away until the car's engine had grown too faint to hear.


	2. Roommates

**Hey Guys, sorry this chapter is a little late. I was busy with my bigger projects. By popular demand, this has some Jara and some Mickber. More couples to come (except Fabina, sorry!) Comments, reviews and request are always welcome. Remember, you can tweet me EveGlass_Author for any questions or requests.**

**More chapters up soon, I promise! :)**

_**P**_atricia

_**C**_innamon, chocolate and lemon swirled into my nostrils, making my stomach gurgle eagerly.

I left my suitcase in the hallway at the foot of the stairs and followed my nose to the kitchen door. Inside, a short Asian woman was busily mixing a bowl of dough and humming happily to herself. A tray of freshly-baked chocolate-chip cookies lay on top of the stove to cool.

The woman looked up and smiled when she saw me standing in the doorway. "Oh, hello lovie," She said, putting the bowl of dough down on the central island of the large kitchen. She wiped her hands on the flowery apron she was wearing. "I'm Trudy Rehmann, your housemother." She explained.

It was funny really. Trudy seemed like the complete opposite to my mother. She smiled, she baked, she was warm and welcoming, whereas Mum was clipped and short even with her children, and she rarely ever did anything that didn't involve her work. I walked over to stand on the opposite side of the island to Trudy.

"I'm Patricia," I replied. I let my eyes flit back to the tray of cookies on the stove. Trudy followed my gaze and laughed. She picked one up and handed it to me.

"Thanks," I muttered as I took a large bite out of the warm cookie. It tasted as good as it looked and smelled.

Trudy smiled and began mixing the dough again. "Have you chosen a room yet, sweetie?" She asked.

"Not yet," I managed through a mouthful of cookie.

"I see," The housemother said. "Victor!" She called. A moment later, a man with black eyes appeared in the doorway. He was scowling.

"Yes?" He asked with a little impatience.

"Victor, sweetie, this is Patricia. She needs to find a room." The housemother asked, coming around to the other side of the island and putting a hand on my shoulder.

Victor looked at me as Trudy said my name, narrowing his eyes. "Follow me," He said as he turned and walked back out into the hallway. I glanced back at Trudy, who smiled, before I followed Victor.

"Girls' rooms are upstairs and boys' rooms are downstairs. Lights out by ten o'clock every night with _no_ exceptions…" Victor told me as he led me up the wooden staircase. He sounded like a bored tour guide at a museum.

As I always did at home when rules and regulations were chucked at me, I switched to autopilot. Instead of listening as he went on, I looked around at the paintings on the walls and the weird abstract shape that reminded me of an eye cut into the wooden banister half a dozen times.

"This is my office, which is forbidden to students." Victor droned, inclining a small nod towards a little room with large windows looking out over the landing. Inside, I could see a desk, some chairs, a few dark paintings of various houses… and stuffed animals. _Lots_ of stuffed animals. There was a huge black raven on the desk, a few rabbits, a rat, an owl and some other animals I didn't recognize immediately.

Victor took me through a door to the right of the landing, which led us into a square hall. There were a half a dozen doors. All were open except for one at the back of a dark corridor.

"There will be two students in each dormitory, no more and no less," Victor said. Then he gestured to one of the doors. "This will be your room." I frowned. I thought that I should at least be allowed to choose my own roommate. It wasn't a prison, after all.

"Don't _I_ get to chose?" I asked him. Victor shook his head. I wanted to argue, but then I remembered Mum's rant in the car earlier about first impressions, and stopped myself. Instead, I stepped inside the room, wheeling my heavy suitcase behind me across the varnished wooden floorboards.

The room was about the same size as my room back at home. There was wicker basket at the end of each of the two beds, two wardrobes, two chest-of-drawers, a desk and a chair. There was already a girl on the bed closest to the large triple-bay window. She had paused in unpacking her things to look up at us as we entered.

"Supper will be served at seven o'clock sharp, and I expect that both you arrive on time." Victor paused and looked from me to the other girl with a small, unpleasant sneer before adding, "I shall leave you to get acquainted and unpack you things."

With that, he turned and left the room, closing the door behind him. I stood silently for a moment. I wasn't nervous or embarrassed; I just didn't know what to say. Now there was something new.

I looked at the other girl. She was a little shorter than me, slight in build, with delicate features on her heart-shaped face. She had glossy brown hair and hazel eyes. Her skin was coffee-coloured.

"Hey," She said, sounding as uncomfortable as I felt. "I'm Joy." She walked over to me and extended a hand. I shook it gingerly.

"Patricia," I looked from the bed she had claimed to the one that would be mine and narrowed my eyes.

"Can I have that bed?" I asked, nodding towards the one closest to the window. Joy raised an eyebrow.

"_Duh_, no," She replied as she sat down on her bed and crossed her legs.

"Why not?" I asked, defiantly folding my arms across my chest.

"Because I was here _first_, that's why." Joy said simply, taking a T-shirt out of her suitcase and folding it neatly on her knees.

"_I_ would have been _first_ if my idiot brother hadn't insisted on ignoring his alarm clock." I grumbled as I went over to my bed and sat down on the end of it.

"That's just an excuse for not getting your _fat butt_ out of bed early enough." Joy countered without looking up from the half-empty suitcase on her bed. I gave her my best menacing look.

"My butt is not fat!" I snapped. Joy looked up. We stared at each other in total silence for a moment. Then, Joy began to laugh, shaking her head.

"What are you laughing at?" I asked as Joy tried unsuccessfully to smother her laughter by almost jamming a hand in her mouth.

"Y…you!" She spluttered. I continued to scowl for a few moments, but then I felt the my mouth curving into a grin. And I laughed with her.

_**A**_mber

When Daddy's car purred smoothly to a halt in front of Anubis House, I got out.

As Bollard, the chauffeur, went to the boot get my suitcases, I checked my reflection in the shiny window of the car. I'd left my fine, silvery-blond hair long and lose down my back, and I'd worn just a hint of nude makeup, which I knew complimented my iced-mint eyes. I'd also worn my brand-new pale pink dress that swirled around my knees when I moved and a glittering new bracelet. Mummy had bought them both for me for the occasion.

I smiled, pleased with what I saw. It was rare that I was ever displeased with my appearance. I usually spent at least an hour if not more in the mornings getting ready for the day. It was unlikely that you would see me in a hideous tracksuit, even when I wasn't going out.

To me, Anubis House just looked like a house made of red brick and slate. It was pretty, but not as nice as Daddy's grey granite country mansion, where I lived with him and Mummy for most of the year. I'd said goodbye to them and my baby brother Peter that morning. I'd almost been late because I had to redo my hair after Peter got a hold of it and messed it up.

With one last glance at my appearance, I turned and walked towards Anubis House. I stopped at the top of the three little steps leading up to the door and looked back to see where Bollard had gotten to with my suitcases. He was struggling to lift one out of the boot.

"Be careful with that!" I called.

"Yes… Miss Millington…" Bollard answered. His face was red and shiny with the strain of the heavy suitcase. As I watched him heave it towards the house, another car pulled up next to Daddy's. It was a sky blue convertible sports car with the hood down. I watched as a tall, imposing man with broad shoulders and golden hair dressed in a dark suit climbed out. A boy about the same age as me got out at of the passenger seat. He had the same golden hair, but unlike the man – his father, I assumed – he was smiling. I watched as he fetched his suitcase from the back seat and set it down on the ground. I melted into a puddle right there in. He was _hot_.

He looked up and smiled at me. I smiled back and quickly walked over to him.

"Hi," I beamed, extending a manicured hand. "I'm Amber Millington." The boy smiled and shook my hand.

"Mick Campbell," He replied before gesturing to the man beside him. "This is my dad." I smiled and shook hands with Mr Campbell. His face seemed to be frozen in a disapproving frown.

"Pleased to meet you, Amber," Mr Campbell said. There was a loud clunk from behind us. We all turned and saw Bollard, struggling to pick up another one of my suitcases.

"Hold on, let me put this inside and I'll come and help." Mick called to Bollard, grabbing his own suitcase and carrying it quickly towards Anubis House. Mr Campbell and I followed. I was warm and tingly all over, a feeling I only ever usually had when I looked at David Beckham. I loved the way Mick's emerald eyes lit up when he smiled, and how his mop of golden hair fell in a tousled mess around his tanned face.

I smiled to myself as I walked up the three little steps to the front door of the house. I was starting to love Anubis House. If all of the boys were like Mick, then I could tell that I was going to have a _fine_ time.

_**M**_ara

I lay back on my newly-made bed and closed my eyes.

The house was quiet, except for the sound of muffled speech from the room next door to mine and the clattering as Trudy baked downstairs. My new roommate hadn't arrived yet. I was nervous about meeting her. What if we didn't get along? The thought made me miss my older sister, Holly, who I'd shared rooms with up until I was ten. She had finished at the school the last year, and she was going to university to become a journalist. I envied her a little. Holly was the girl that everybody wanted to hang out with. She couldn't be less like me. Holly looked for like our mother, whereas I looked more like Dad. We both had black hair, but my sister's was straighter and finer than my froth of thick black curls. Her eyes were amber-gold, and mine were chocolate brown. In personality, we were different too. I was studious and never really broke the rules. Holly was a different story altogether. She had a boyfriend, she went out to parties and she stayed out late, much to annoyance of our parents.

I didn't realize that I could really miss her that much. I hadn't really ever been away from home before. Sure, I'd been away at weekends to stay with family, but at least I knew the people I was staying with. I didn't know anybody at Anubis House. I felt the wave of nerves building up inside of me again.

As I lay with my eyes closed, I heard music start in the room next door. I supposed that I should go and introduce myself. With a sigh, I sat up and gasped.

There was a tall, lanky boy of about my age with messy, dirty blond hair, pale skin and eyes like sapphires standing by the chest of drawers that I had filled with my things, staring at me. I hadn't heard him come in. My eyes fell to one of my white and black polka-dot bras which he was holding in one hand. He was frozen in place on his way back out.

I leapt to my feet. "Hey, give that back!" I yelled angrily. Then the boy's face broke into a grin and he bolted out the door, laughing. I ran after him. "Come _back_!"


	3. Polka Dot

**Ladies and Gentlemen of Anubis and platinum members of Sibuna Club, welcome to **_**Chapter Three: Polka Dot**_**. Thank you for the generous reviews so far from the regulars. Looking forward to hearing what you all think of this chapter. The Jara pairing is on the way, so don't worry.**

**As you may have guessed, **_**I do not own House of Anubis or any of the original characters, but I do own the storyline.**_** Blah, blah, yawn. Enjoy!**

_**M**_ick

_**I**_ heaved my suitcase up the three small steps and in the door.

Smells of baking wafted through the house. I carried my suitcase over to the stairs and was setting it down out of the way when I heard a female voice yell "Come _back_!" I looked up just in time to see a lanky, dirty blond boy hurtle down the stairs at top speed, followed by a short girl with a thick froth of midnight black curls. The lanky boy was waving a black and white polka-dot bra just out of her reach, taunting her. In fact, he was so busy looking back at her over his shoulder to notice me at the bottom of the stairs.

I tried to move out of the way in time, but it was too late. The lanky boy slammed his shoulder into mine. He dropped the bra to the ground. I swept down and picked it up. The girl – who I assumed was the owner of the bra – stood on the last step, eyes wide, blushing. I extended the bra and she whipped it out of my hand, stuffing it quickly into her pocket.

"Th-thanks," She stuttered, looking down at her feet.

I turned my gaze on the lanky boy, who was watching her with amusement. "Think it's funny, do you?" I asked him, taking a step forward and drawing myself up to my full height. I was still shorter than him by about half an inch.

The other boy shrugged and smirked, his sapphire blue eyes flitting to the girl, who looked close to tears. I could see the enjoyment plain on his face. "Yes, I do." He replied.

I narrowed my eyes and took another step towards him. "You do, do you? How about you try picking on someone your own size?" I growled. The other boy arched an eyebrow and sneered.

"I hope by that you don't mean _you_." He said, looking me up and down. I could feel my blood beginning to boil.

I opened my mouth to reply, when I heard a soft, breathy voice answer for me. "Uh, excuse me? It's fine, really." I turned to look at the girl. Her gaze was bouncing back and forth between me and the lanky boy, but never meeting our eyes.

"No, it's not fine at all," I told her, returning my attention to the other boy. "I think you should apologize to her. Fast,"

Just then, my dad and Amber walked in the front door. They looked at me, then at the lanky boy, then at each other in confusion.

The other boy smirked. "Or what?"

"What is going on here?" Asked a short Asian woman, who walked into the hallway rubbing her hands clean on the dishtowel slung over her shoulder. Her eyes slid from the girl to the lanky, dirty blond. She pursed her lips slightly and put her hands on her hips. "Jerome Clarke, can you not have _one day_ without upsetting someone?" She asked.

"Sorry Trudy," Jerome replied, although his voice was devoid of all remorse. He looked back at the dark-haired girl and smiled. Dropping his voice to a whisper so that only the girl and I could hear it, he breathed, "Welcome to Anubis, Polka-Dot." Then he walked past me, deliberately knocking my arm again, and headed down a corridor. I heard a door close behind him. Trudy's face turned up in a warm smile.

"Hello dearies, welcome to Anubis House."

_**A**_lfie

"Mum, stop it!" I protested as my mother tried to straighten the collar of my neatly-pressed shirt, ignoring my complaints.

My parents had bullied me into wearing a pair of dark dress trousers to go with the shirt. I'd pretended not to be able to find the hideous shoes – which I'd hidden under the bed amongst the clutter – that they'd bought a week before, intent on making me wear them to my first day at Anubis House. Instead, I'd put on my favourite trainers, much to my parents' disgust. If it had been up to me, I would have worm my old combats and a slogan T-shirt.

My mother was dressed, as usual, in a smart blouse, a high-waisted pencil-skirt and a pair of heels. Her long auburn hair was pulled up and off of her high cheekbones in a tight bun held in place by a tortoise-shell clip. She looked regal and stately, like a buisnesswoman.

Dad frowned at me as a squirmed, trying to escape my mother's obsessive straightening. "Stop whinging, Alfred." He said shortly. He looked me over from top to bottom. "You're slouching again. Stand up!" He put his hands on my shoulders and pulled me up to my full height. I was already tall and gangly for an eleven-year-old, and I felt quite awkward and clumsy most of the time. I felt even more awkward as I stood there in my fancy clothes, dying of heat. It was a wonder to me how people like my dad, who spent their lives wearing these suits in boardrooms filled with dozens of fat buisness representatives with bad breath and body-odour, didn't end up like Christmas roast turkeys.

My father was about an inch shorter than my mother, even when she wasn't wearing her heels. His skin was the darkest of browns, almost black, and his eyes were wide and brown, like mine. His dark hair was clipped ruthlessly short. He walked with his arms folded behind his back like he was constantly pacing. In my parents' marriage, Dad did all the talking, and Mum just stood there and agreed with everything he said.

Dad looked up at Anubis House, narrowing his eyes in the sunlight. He grunted in something like approval and began walking towards the building. My mother put a slender hand on my shoulder and we headed up the three stone steps together, following my father inside the cool darkness of the boarding house just as a small blue truck pulled up beside ours.

_**F**_abian

When Uncle Ade's blue truck sputtered to a halt next to a red Porsche in front of Anubis House, making us both lurch forward slightly, I felt the first twinge of nerves gnawing at me. I opened the car door and stepped out, my eyes scanning the red brick building and the lawns around it. Dense woodland sprouted around the borders of the grounds, stretching for miles into the distance. The sound of dance music drifted towards us from Anubis House. It seemed that some of my housemates had already arrived. I made my way around to the back of the car and collected my case.

As we crossed the gravel, my legs felt like jelly beneath my body, ready to give out any second. Uncle Ade walked beside me, looking up at Anubis House, smiling to himself. The building looked a lot like all the others in the area. It was probably built somewhere between the middle and the end of the nineteenth century, by the look of the thick ivy crawling and winding up the brickwork almost to the roof. The slates were a little chipped, but they all seemed to be there. It looked nice enough in the sunshine, but there was something about Anubis House that just didn't quite fit. Perhaps it was the way the late-summer breeze whispered in the trees and shrubs, which were beginning to lose their leaves for the winter, or the way that deadly silence fell at the end of birdsong.

When we stepped inside the front door, my feelings were only enhanced by the dark vastness of the house, like it never ended, went on forever. The sun's rays didn't seem to warm the inside of Anubis House, although its colours blazed on the tiled floor and wooden panelled walls by the stained glass window on the wall behind the stairs. A man with black skin dressed in a smart suit, a stately, elegant woman with auburn hair and a gangly boy with skin the colour of dark copper who I assumed was their son stood by the stairs, looking around. The boy was dressed in smart clothes too, apart from the pair of scuffed up trainers poking out from under his pressed trousers. The family watched as I rolled my suitcase in.

The man smiled. "Hello," He stepped forward and shook Uncle Ade's hand, then mine. He had a grip like a python. "Philip Lewis," The man said. "This is my wife Marsha, and our son Alfred."

Marsha Lewis gave a little smile, but didn't speak. Alfred just stood quietly at his mother's side, watching me.

"Ade Rutter," Uncle Ade replied. Then he slapped me on the shoulder and gave me a little shake. "And this is my nephew, Fabian."

I smiled at the Lewis family. They seemed like the buisness type, not at all like my Uncle Ade. But then, in a school that prestigious, there was bound to be a few buisness families. Alfred looked different, though, somewhat out of place beside his parents. His eyes seemed to gleam mischievously when his parents weren't looking, like he was itching to sneak off and prank somebody. He didn't look like a stuck up rich-kid at all.

Just then, a tall man with golden hair and a serious expression strode into the hall followed by a smiling Asian woman and two other children who looked the same age as Alfred and I. The first one was a boy with the same golden hair as the man and broad shoulders, and the other was a pretty girl with hair like a curtain of starlight.

"Oh, hello my lovelies," The Asian woman smiled. "I'm Trudy Rehmann, the housemother here at Anubis. I was just giving a quick tour around the place. Would you like to join us?"

Philip and Marsha Lewis exchanged a quick glance with Uncle Ade before nodding and following Trudy and the serious, golden-haired man. The silvery-haired girl and the other boy stayed with Alfred and me in the hallway.

"Hey, I'm Amber Millington," said the girl, holding out a hand to shake mine with a toss of her fine, pale blond hair. She shook my hand, and then turned to Alfred, expecting him to do the same. But he was just standing there with a glazed look in his dark brown eyes, like a sleepwalker. He was staring at Amber. She stared back, but with a more puzzled expression. I smiled as I watched him snap out of the trance and gingerly shake Amber's hand.

"This is Mick," Amber continued, gesturing to the golden-haired boy beside her. Mick smiled and did a little salute.

"Fabian Rutter," I told them. "This is…" We all turned our eyes on Alfred. He blinked once or twice.

"Uh, Lewis… Marmaduke… Alfred!" He got out eventually. "But you can c-call me Alfie." I winced at his blunder in the moment of silence that followed. Eventually, it was the blond boy, Mick, who broke it.

"Right, well, we'd better catch up with Trudy for the tour." He said. Amber smiled and turned in the direction that the housemother and the adults had gone, followed by Mick then by me. Alfie took a few seconds to fully snap out of his trance, and brought up the rear as we followed out guide deeper and deeper into Anubis House.


End file.
